Trading RM, LLC.

This morning during our Trading RM morning meeting we talked about the current environment and how to treat it.  Everyone agreed trading has been slow, volume is declining, average daily range is declining, etc...  A great analogy was brought up: as trader's we need to be like the guy on the end of the bench on a baseball team.  He may not have played all game, all week, all season - but you can bet every professional is mentally and physically prepared to enter the game on short notice.

Everyone remembers Kirk Gibson's off the bench home run to end game 1 of the 1988 World Series.  From www.mlb.com:

"Belcher was replaced in the third inning, but despite several opportunities the A's couldn't add any runs against the Dodgers bullpen. LA managed another run off in the seventh, but things looked bleak when Stewart turned the ball over to Dennis Eckersley in the ninth. In his second year as a closer, Eckersley had really taken to the role, posting 45 saves. But after recording two outs, Eckersley was uncharacteristically wild and issued a free pass to pinch-hitter Mike Davis.

That's when Lasorda sent Gibson to bat down by a run with one on and two out. Gibson, the National League's MVP that season, was on the bench with hamstring and knee problems. But the crowd at Dodger Stadium roared as Gibson limped to the plate. After working a 3-2 count, Gibson sent one of the most memorable home runs in baseball history into the right-field stands for a Game 1 victory.

Gibson's limp-off home run was the first time a team had been trailing in a World Series game and homered to win in the bottom of the ninth. It was also Gibson's only at-bat of the entire Series. But it was enough, as the Dodgers rode the moment all the way to a World Series championship."

If as a trader I only get one at bat or one swing, will I hit the ball? 

Thanks to Major League Baseball the footage is unavailable, but we do have a Nike commercial and a Kirk Gibson interview:

 Good job to Trading RM guys who got long SINA, LEN, SLM, BBBY and other this morning.